Published: Jul 22, 2009

Although a dealership makes the finance contract you sign seem final, and while you are legally bound by the terms the moment you sign, the agreement is actually subject to approval by the finance company before the agreement becomes fully binding on both parties (you and the lender). Dealerships often write finance agreements based on non-binding estimates provided by a finance companies based on basic financial and credit information provided by the dealerships.

If, when the dealership submits the loan agreement to the lender for underwriting, the lender may refuse to accept the initial estimate, especially if it finds any discrepancies in the credit or income information initially provided by the dealer. Unfortunately, the result of this practice is that a consumer can sign an agreement, pay a down payment, and then be contacted and told that the loan he thought he had be given will require a higher down payment, a shorter term, higher interest, or may even be with a totally different lender.

Since the lender has rejected your preliminary loan offer, you now have no financing to purchase the vehicle. If you wish to keep the car, you will likely need to find alternative financing, such as through your credit union or bank, or agree to the new financing offer being presented by the lender. Alternatively, you can probably return the vehicle to the dealership and receive a refund of any money you already paid. To read more about auto financing, I encourage you to visit the Bills.com Auto Loans page.

I wish you the best of luck finding a workable solution this problem, and hope that the information I have provided helps you Find. Learn. Save.